Smithsonian miscellaneous collections . nceby I. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire. To give some idea of the extraordinary extent given to the genusBarbus by one of the ablest of European ichthyologists another spe-cies referred to that genus may be illustrated. It is a large, fine fishof Central Africa and has been named by Dr. Boulenger Barbustropidolepis. By some authors it would be relegated to the genus gill] NOTEWORTHY EXTRA-EUROPEAN CYPRINIDS 339 Puntius, although not very like any of the other species. Unlikethe typical barbels, it has no barbels whatever. It sometimes reachesa length of a meter
Smithsonian miscellaneous collections . nceby I. Geoffroy Saint-Hilaire. To give some idea of the extraordinary extent given to the genusBarbus by one of the ablest of European ichthyologists another spe-cies referred to that genus may be illustrated. It is a large, fine fishof Central Africa and has been named by Dr. Boulenger Barbustropidolepis. By some authors it would be relegated to the genus gill] NOTEWORTHY EXTRA-EUROPEAN CYPRINIDS 339 Puntius, although not very like any of the other species. Unlikethe typical barbels, it has no barbels whatever. It sometimes reachesa length of a meter (40 inches) and may attain a weight of ten oreleven kilograms. It is one of the commonest fishes of Lake Tan-ganyika and by the natives named MBiriki. In the spawning seasonit runs up the rivers discharging into the lake and manifests as muchactivity as a salmon, leaping up falls five to seven feet high. Itespecially courses up the river Lu-Fuko, a very rapid stream inter-rupted by many falls, in great numbers during January to May and. Fig. ioi.—Barbus tropidolepis. After Boulenger. remains therein several months. It then gives employment or foodto several villages nearby. Large numbers are caught in nets—sometimes as many as seventy at one time. The fish is considered tobe excellent and, indeed, one of the very best of all the numerousfishes of Lake Tanganyika; it is not fished for, however, in the lakeitself. Three monotypic genera are peculiar to Africa—Leptocypris,Chelcethiops and Neohola—but they are closely related to Indiangenera. The genus Chelcethiops is of special interest on account of the very
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Keywords: ., bookauthorsm, bookcentury1800, bookdecade1860, booksubjectscience
